Airgun lubrication- alternative sources and mixing your own

[TonyL]

As I understand it, evert, the idea (even behind moly greases) is that once the lubricity of the grease itself has diminished, because the molybdenum bonds to the metal, this gives the long lasting, dry film. So there should be no issues there. The above method is what many of us worked with back in the late 70s and early 80s once Eddie Barber of Airgun World introduced us to the delights of Dri-Slide. The only thing is, back then, tight fitting guides and top hats weren't the technology of the day, so although the action may have been slick, quick and lubricated, most guns lubed only with the Dri-Slide had twangy actions. Hence the very liberal use of moly grease in many cases to get the dampening effect.

[gunstock]

Burnishing is said to make the metal last up to 3 times longer

[I. J.]

Anti seize G & N type paste, open gear grease and Macarri (Sp?) tar floats my boat.

[Geezer]

Burnishing is said to make the metal last up to 3 times longer

Who says that?

[gunstock]

Who says that?

ave a look on google

[evert]

Bought a liter of 30w Lawnmover oil today. The label says it is supposed to be good for classic mopeds too, and it resembles Mac1 secret sauce in both color and viscosity. Used it when rebuilding a Daisy co2 revolver today, time will tell how it reacts with the seals.

[Geezer]

ave a look on google

I’d rather hear from a metallurgist than from a search engine.

In my limited knowledge, burnishing = wear.

[TonyL]

Bought a liter of 30w Lawnmover oil today. The label says it is supposed to be good for classic mopeds too, and it resembles Mac1 secret sauce in both color and viscosity. Used it when rebuilding a Daisy co2 revolver today, time will tell how it reacts with the seals.

Ah, that reminds me.....Charlie da Tuna's blogs used to mention a special formula for post build lubing / top-up lubing of certain areas which couldn't be quickly and directly accessed. Gene's Mystery Mix maybe? And it consisted of 30w non-detergent oil mixed with high content (60% or higher) moly paste. So along similar lines but to help with metal to metal and not for the application you mention.

[WebleyWombler]

I’d rather hear from a metallurgist than from a search engine.

In my limited knowledge, burnishing = wear.

Burnishing means 'polishing' . A polished surface will slide better than a rough one and not promote the wear or friction that the latter would.

[PhatMan]

evert,

Now that is an interesting option! I guess you have a good guide/spring fit?
Looks like you are shooting a quite heavily modified setup there.
How does the dry moly/graphite mix last? does it wear or move fast, or can you shoot the gun without servicing for a long time?

My 'sporting springers' are used quite a bit - ca. 5000 to 15000+ pellets a year.

As a general rule, I service my rifles by pellet count - usually 10000 pellets.

If the pellet count is not reached, then they get serviced once a year.

When the rifles are stripped, the dry lube is still present on the piston seal & innards - some wearing through of the dry moly film is seen on the contact areas of non glided pistons, but nothing drastic.

If I think that the rifle needs a bit of additional lube, I puff in a little of the dry lube powder (using a plastic pipette) into the compression chamber, through the transfer port.

Have fun & a good weekend

Best regards

Russ

[harvey_s]

Burnishing means 'polishing' . A polished surface will slide better than a rough one and not promote the wear or friction that the latter would.

It also applies to the polishing of solid lubricants onto a substrate.

In my limited knowledge, burnishing = wear.

Burnishing does not mean wear, never has.

[edbear2]

CMD Extreme Pressure oil on pins / pivots etc., NEO synthetics HPCC number I on springs at the moment, re-assuringly expensive but get it from work

ATB, ED

[evert]

I see on the 'bay that it is possible to buy a half kilo tub of dry moly paste at a quite reasonable price. (item number:193728766254)
A tub that size should last a lifetime for most of us, and could be mixed with CV joint grease to get the desired consistency if it is too dry.
Any comments?

[TonyL]

Jim once mentioned mixing of different greases to get to the consistency / lubricity he required in one of his articles, evert.
I think that as long as the two constituents are compatible, you will be okay. For example, Molyslip state that the AS60 Paste and the OGL (Open Gear Lube) that I've used for a few years are compatible. However, I've never actually mixed them, preferring to use just a small amount of the AS60 on high load areas and the OGL for more "general" application, if that makes sense?

[DJP]

I used to work for a company called Würth, this is where I learnt a lot about different lubes and their properties.
Get yourself a can of their spray chain grease, it is solvented so goes on as a liquid, spreading evenly. The solvent then evaporates leaving a very sticky, high quality white grease. Great for springs!

I've been using Motul chain lube on springs for years. It's much the same stuff: A white, sticky spray grease. It looks very similar to the stuff that used to come on V Mach springs.